1. Field of the Invention
The invention is directed to an axial agricultural combine having a rotor with a feeding and threshing section, and a separating section that can be driven independently of one another.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Case IH of Racine, Wisconsin, and New Holland, of New Holland, Pa., currently market axial flow combines. The Case IH combine is fitted with a single longitudinally arranged rotor located between the sidesheets of the combine. This rotor together with its housing threshes and separates the harvested crop material. The New Holland combine uses two side-by-side rotors also longitudinally arranged between the sidesheets of the combine. These rotors together with their housings also thresh and separate the harvested crop material.
The rotors of both of these combines are single units that are driven by a gearbox located at the rear of the rotor housing. The same rotational speed used in the threshing operation is also used in the separating operation. As such the operational rotational speed of the rotor is a compromise between optimal speed for threshing and optimal speed for separating. One attempt to optimize these operations is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,112,279 which discloses a hybrid combine having a transverse independently controlled threshing cylinder and an axial separating rotor.
The axial separator unit disclosed in the above-identified patent comprises a cylindrical rotor housing having a bottom portion provided with a grate and a top portion provided with helical vanes for indexing the crop material to the rear of the housing; and a rotor having crop engaging assemblies that engage the crop located in the bottom portion of the housing and throw it upwards against the helical vanes. The central longitudinal axis of the rotor is located below the central longitudinal axis of the housing making the rotor non-concentric with the housing.
A combine having an axial rotor with independently driven threshing and separating sections has been proposed. The proposed rotor was concentrically arranged in a rotor housing with bearing supports at each end of the housing.